An MCA central committee member today stressed that the party had always been steadfast in opposing unilateral conversion, and it did not approve of the decision by Perlis to pass the amendment to state Syariah law to permit one parent to convert a minor to Islam.

Ti Lian Ker, who is the party's Religious Harmony Bureau chairperson argued that the walkout of its sole representative in the state legislature, Titi Tinggi assemblyperson Khaw Hock Kong, was not equivalent to an "abstention", nor did it even remotely accord approval.

He was responding to allegations that MCA’s ‘walkout’ when the Perlis state Legislative Assembly approved the amendments to allow unilateral conversion by either parent showed tacit approval of the move.

"On the very evening after the Perlis state Legislative Assembly approved the amendment... our deputy president Wee Ka Siong immediate issued a press statement to chastise the passing of the amendments and maintained that state legislation must follow federal legislation.

"The next day, our president Liow Tiong Lai issued a stronger rebuke, equating the passing of the Perlis amendment to sabotage," recounted Ti.

He also reiterated that the party's Central Committee which met on 12 Dec 2016, quizzed Khaw who explained that he walked out in protest of the amendment.

"Nevertheless, our Central Committee has issued a stern warning and strongly pressed that he should have better conveyed our party’s position during debate on the Enactment, voted 'nay' and then walked out," added Ti.

He argued that the walkout was not an “abstention”, nor did it indicate MCA was undecided or wavering on the issue. When the party totally objected against any form of unilateral conversion by a muallaf and its top two leaders had issued statements of rebuke over it

Ti also pointed out that the issue of unilateral conversion to Islam affected all non-Muslims, and thus accusations that MCA had wavered on standing up for the Chinese in the matter was unfounded.

"We may be a race-based party, but all our efforts are for multiracial/religious Malaysians.

"The issue of unilateral conversion (affects) non-Muslims and involves the judicial overlap between the civil and Syariah courts to which our party have always affirmed that the civil court must be the avenue to seek legal recourse," stressed the party Central Committee member.

BN-ruled Perlis recently passed the amendment to state Syariah laws to allow a single parent to convert a child to Islam, this goes against the Federal government's amendments to the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 which requires both parents' consent.

This had caused a row amongst the BN on the move which seemed to contradict the federal government.